THE GANG'S ALL HERE: "OUTSIDE THE LINES" HITS THE STREETS

ESPN's "Outside The Lines" examined the connection
between gangs and sports in its piece, "Turf Wars: Gangs and
Sports." In the first part, ESPN's Shelley Smith looked at
three NFL players who have ties to gangs. One segment
examined how sports apparel is relevant in the gang world.
ESPN's Bob Ley: "Gangs proclaim their identities and their
names through colors and now through athletic wear, through
logos and teams. Police say this is by design. Since sports
apparel has never been more popular generally, gangwear is
now usually undetectable." Dr. George Knox of the National
Gang Crime Research Center, on youths buying sports apparel:
"Society does not realize that it's just as deadly as selling
that kid a loaded .45." ESPN Curry Kirkpatrick reported that
teams, schools and companies all have been turned into
acronyms for gangs. For example, in Fort Worth, TX, Colorado
Rockies stands for Crips Rule. A Dallas gang, "Mexican
Mafia," wears Univ. of Michigan apparel. When Kirkpatrick
asked a gang member if they root for Michigan, he said, "We
don't give a (expletive) about Michigan." Other examples
given for acronyms for teams and companies included the
Bulls, Cowboys, Saints, White Sox, Magic, Astros, Nike,
Converse and Reebok (ESPN, 12/5).